Metro Pacific pitches new big-ticket tollway projects

MANILA, Philippines — The Metro Pacific Group has started to explore its next big-ticket projects to the south of Luzon as it is close to finishing its current pipeline of tollways.

MPT South president and general manager Raul Ignacio told reporters the company is pitching a new set of projects to the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), including the lane upgrade of the Manila-Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX) and the possible partnership with San Miguel Corp. (SMC).

First, MPT South will submit a proposal to expand the lanes in the fourth segment of CAVITEX, from the Zapote Interchange to Kawit Toll Plaza.

Ignacio said the project would add another lane in each direction in that particular portion. Once the project is completed, the segment will turn into a 3x3 road, from 2x2 currently, broadening the space for motorists going to and from Kawit, Cavite.

MPT South projects a 10 percent hike in vehicle traffic in Segment 4 of CAVITEX, from 50,603 this year, to 55,773 in 2025. This optimism is attributed to the scheduled completion in 2025 of a 1.3-kilometer road bridging CAVITEX and the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAX).

The project, called CAVITEX-CALAX Link, is expected to facilitate at least 28,397 vehicles per day, based on estimates.

Moreover, MPT South is negotiating with SMC the specifics of their plan for a joint venture in building two toll roads that would run from Cavite to Batangas.

In 2023, Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) and SMC set aside their rivalry to sign a P72-billion deal to put up the Cavite-Batangas Expressway (CBEX) and Nasugbu-Bauan Expressway (NBEX), which would span a combined 88 kilometers.

The CBEX will cover more than 27 kilometers, crossing the towns of Silang, Amadeo, Tagaytay, Indang, Mendez and Alfonso in Cavite before terminating in Nasugbu, Batangas. NBEX, for its part, will pass through the eastern and western portions of Batangas, extending for 61 kilometers.

Ignacio said the CBEX is designed to link to CALAX by way of Silang. If things go as planned, the new toll projects should be completed and opened in 2027.

For 2025, MPT South, a unit of MPTC, is allotting P14 billion for capital expenditures, of which P9 billion will go to the remaining phases of CALAX and P5 billion will be invested in the connector of CAVITEX and C5 Road, known as CAVITEX-C5 Link.

The target is to complete all of the pending projects in 2025 to minimize additional costs and to improve traffic conditions.